At ideasmoney we have always emphasised on the need for long term investing in equity (> 5 years) and Systematic investing. Moreover we have always suggested to invest only such money in equity which is not required for at least a couple of years.

People who panic are only traders and if you have been investing through vehicles like SIP, you need not worry at all.

There are two more things that one needs to follow

1) Never ever think experts ( analyst) are gods-

Many people tend to follow words of analyst appearing on TV seriously. They know the trend but they are not God's to know the future. Recently a famous analyst wrote a post on the lessons of stock market in their website. It was all words of wisdom but he never uttered those words before crash. He wouldn't have anticipated the crash ( which is not a real crash for investors) either!!!.

2) Don't let headlines rule you.

Media starts writing about bulls and bears the alternate days. They create huge hype on volatility of market. Never get swayed by them too.

Most important is have confidence in time and have realistic expectations {returns on your investment (15-20% pa)}.

News-Issue Open 09-Jan-2008Issue Close 15-Feb-2008Scheme ObjectiveStandard Chartered Small & Midcap Equity (SME) Fund, is a close-ended equity scheme with no assured returns. The investment objective of the Scheme is to seek to generate capital appreciation from a diversified portfolio of equity and equity related instruments.Equity DiversifiedClose-EndedEntry Load 0.00 %Exit Load 0.00 %Exit load: For redemptions or switch out during the specified redemption period, till the maturity of the scheme, the unit holder will have to pay the balance proportionate unamortized initial issue expenses applicable to their investments.Views-Stan chart have proven themselves in Premier equity fund. But they don't have a long term track record across market cycles. Small and mid cap funds can give great returns over long term. Small and Mid caps are available at cheap valuations after the recent market downturn. Investors can take up existing small and mid cap funds from market.This is a close ended fund.so, higher issue expenses can be amortised.Can be a disadvantage to investors. This funds may be for the hardcore stan. chart fans!.should i apply, how good is Standard Chartered Small & Midcap, is it a good fund,small cap mid cap,NFO 2008, NFO review, analysis, views, opinion on Standard Chartered Small & Midcap

I get to see a lot of questions in website Q&A, forums, mails in the lines of..."I have invested Rs X in Y MF/ Z shares. is it a good investment??".

The immediate answer that comes to me is "Why did you invest if you were not aware of the consequences??". It is very important to understand where you are investing your money. At least a basic study or understanding is essential before you invest. There is no point going around for reassurance after you make the investment.

With the markets opening giving great returns in 2007 and IPOs also giving decent returns, there is mad rush for making 'Quick money' from the stock markets . People throw in their money without even thinking twice and blame stock markets on a dooms day.

So, understanding where your money goes and understanding the risk associated with your investment is very important before you throw your money in.

One more important thing is understanding the difference between investing and trading. Some people ask.." I have Rs X to spare for 2 months..which stock/ equity MF can I "INVEST" in??...

It's very important to understand that betting in your money for two months in equity is nothing less than gambling.

So always "Understand your investment"and enter for a "Long time horizon" to reap the benefits of stock markets.

The most frequently asked question these days is " Sensex has crossed 20K , I have never invested in equity and will I get to gain if I enter the market now?. What are the investment options?"

Any day is a good day for a person to enter the market provided he understands that time in the market is more important than timing the market.

An SIP in a equity mutual fund running over a couple of years would be the best way for the retail investor to enter the market.

Always remember to invest only such money which you need not have immediately into stocks/Equity MF. i.e don't ever invest money that you would need in the short term into stocks(unless you are OK to play around with the associated high risks).

Understand Long term is at least 3-5 years and anything less than that can be termed as a short term investment for equity investment.

one close definition of Financial Independence is ability to sustain on one's passive income.i.e. you can afford your day to day life without having to earn money by any need ( by work or business?).

'Financial Independence' should be one of the key goal of each and every investor.( In simple terms..this can be called retirement planning too?).

Starting early, investing regularly and compounding your money is the key to success for financial independence.

To judge how far you are from it ..face a question.

There are a lot of people who thrive only on their regular income. i.e that they cannot manage their day to day business even if their salary/income flows are stopped for even a single month. At least small but steady steps should be taken by each and everyone in moving towards financial independence.

The investment objective of the Scheme is to seek long term capital appreciation by investing predominantly in equity and equity related securities of companies engaged in or expected to benefit from the growth and development of infrastructure.

Views-

This is a closed ended fund and would be converted to open-ended later on. So, comes with a baggage of excess expense load chargeable to close ended funds. HDFC is no doubt a strong fund house. But investors better look for SIP in open-ended infrastructure schemes

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New:-AIG Mutual Fund has launched an open-ended equity scheme AIG Infrastructure and Economic Reform Fund. The investment objective of the scheme is to generate long-term capital appreciation from a diversified portfolio.

The scheme would charge an entry load of 2.25 per cent for investment below Rs 5 crore.The minimum one-time investment under the regular plan is Rs 5,000 and in multiplies of Re 1 thereafter

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Recently read a news item that inflows from ULIPs to stock market could be around $15bn in 2009. Great news that so much money is coming in to the markets . But the sad part is so many investors have taken an uninformed decision of investing in equity through the wrong route.

A significant portion of premium money goes into paying hefty commission to insurance agents and other costs and Insurance is clubbed along with investment to hide all these costs.

I wouldn't only blame the agents. Investors also should try to do a basic analysis before they put across their hard earned money into such costly products. ULIP may definitely give returns but unfortunately not the full return that the investor deserves.

High time IRDA does something like the SEBI, by waiving the unnecessary entry loads.

The sector chosen looks very attractive. If you want to diversify into Natural resources, you can opt for this fund. Reliance already has a proven power sector fund. Now the fund house has broadened this power aspect to whole of natural resources.

Given the track record of this fund house, the Fund may end up mopping up huge money...When you apply you may apply directly to the fund house to avoid the entry load.